In this article, classroom researcher Harrison Campbell recounts his research into the literacy experiences of eight junior high (grades 8 and 9) students over the course of a school semester in Western Canada. Using phenomenological inquiry, Campbell invited students into a process of making meaning through experience. These experiences, brought…

The purpose of this research was to identify conflicts in the rights and responsibility of Grade 9 test takers when some parts of a large-scale test are marked by teachers and used in the calculation of students' class marks. Data from teachers' questionnaires and students' questionnaires from a 2009-10 administration of a large-scale test of…

Current thinking encourages teachers to incorporate a range of assessment practices that are responsive to student thinking and promote student learning. At the same time, teachers are situated in a landscape of accountability, where they are often seen as technicians who implement prescribed curriculum, policies, and procedures with success…

This article examines the complex task of designing a large-scale assessment to align with a reform-oriented view of mathematics teaching and learning. Specifically, we address this issue through the case of the province of Ontario that has a reform-oriented curriculum and support for its implementation. The province also has a mandate to assess…

Reports on a study designed to reveal differences in quality ratings that teachers in three high school curricular areas--English and social studies, mathematics and science, and business--gave to representative samples of freshman writing in the argument mode. (RBW)

Aspects of Aboriginal cultural knowledge/perspectives were integrated into the Grade 9 social studies curriculum of a high school in a western Canadian city to appraise the impact on academic achievement, class attendance, and school retention among specific groups of Aboriginal students. The results suggest cautious optimism about increasing…

This guide provides general information about the Achievement Testing Program as well as specific information about the design, the composition, and the scoring of the Grade 9 English Language Arts Achievement Test. The guide contains samples of writing assignments and reading selections contained in the test, as well as objectives, explanation of…

This study, taking place in a grade 9 class in an urban south-eastern Ontario community, sought to answer two research questions: What are the factors that impede or facilitate the implementation of multiple assessments? What are students' views of being assessed using multiple assessments? In the end, five factors emerged that impeded the…

Aligned with its 1998 standards for first and second language learning, Alberta Learning has published lesson plans that aim for a closer relationship between learning and evaluation. Each volume in this series presents a specific task for students that involves planning, carrying out and evaluating their work. The task for ninth grade students…

Intended for students taking the Grade 9 English Language Arts Achievement Test in Alberta, Canada, this reading test (to be administered along with the questions booklet) contains eight short reading selections taken from fiction, nonfiction, and poetry, including the following: "Thieving Raffles" (Eric Nicol); "Flight of the…

Intended for students taking the Grade 9 Language Arts Achievement Test in Alberta, Canada, this reading test contains 65 multiple choice test items related to the eight selections in the reading booklet and to a cartoon and four additional reading selections within this booklet. The questions examine the student's skills in (1) understanding…

The ninth grade unit in Ukrainian as a second language, the third in a series, is designed as a teacher's guide for use in Alberta secondary schools. An introductory section outlines the unit's objectives. It is followed by six "concept" sections, each of which charts content and classroom techniques to be used in teaching time-related…

This manual was developed to assist classroom teachers responsible for implementing the grades 8 and 9 integrated occupational social studies program in Alberta, Canada. It contains: (1) information about the goals and objectives of the curriculum; (2) thematic contexts for the delivery of prescribed knowledge, skills, and attitudes; (3)…

This "Summary Report" is the last report of the findings of the 1985 Manitoba Reading Assessment. The report contains a description of the study along with recommendations based upon teachers' and principals' opinions and the judgment of the Technical Advisory Committee. The purposes of the 1985 Reading Assessment were: (1) to provide…

Examined ninth graders' self-reports of peer social activity in two separate years. Data from four administrations each year suggest that peer social activity is correlated with social self-esteem, enhanced social self-efficacy, and teacher's ratings of social engagement. Social isolation appeared to be an independent dimension related to lowered…